Kabul's Western-Style Intercontinental Hotel Attacked, Bombed

A group of gunmen and suicide bombers attacked Kabul's Intercontinental Hotel on Tuesday night.

Heavy gunfire was heard coming from the blacked out hotel with the Afghan police reporting that the attackers have also been using rocket propelled grenades to fade off the police offensive.

As far as who is behind the attack, The Associated Press reported that Zabiullah Mujahid, a Taliban spokesman, had claimed that Taliban bombers were responsible for the attack that begun late in the evening, local time.

So far, there has been no confirmation on the number of casualties, but according to an Afghan police officer, at least two suicide bombers who detonated their armed vests within the hotel were confirmed among the dead.

The Inter-Continental Hotel is a popular and heavily guarded hotel in the capital city of Afghanistan frequented by political leaders and western visitors located in the outskirts of the city.

According to CNN, three Taliban assailants broke through security guards and one of them, a suicide bomber, detonated his vest within the hotel. Rocket propelled grenades were also fired from the 5-story hotel and also snipers were reportedly firing against police forces.

These attacks occurred in the wake of NATO's announcement of increasing the Afghanistan's national army and police to 352,000, currently at 300,000, according to the news outlet.